Hello, Old Friend
by That Lonely Girl on a Laptop
Summary: After a number of circumstances, May is trapped in a bout of severe depression and Ash is extremely worried for her. But he does find an old friend who may be able to help her. Oneshot! Advanceshipping!


**Hey folks, I am so sorry I haven't been writing lately, a lot is going on in my life right now. But I wanted to write this little one-shot to cheer myself up so here we go. Hope you like it and don't forget to review!**

"Come on, eat!" Ash begged, shoving the noodles under the girl's nose, who just sighed and looked away from him. The boy frowned in worry, she hadn't eaten properly in weeks and the fact that she was clearly losing weight because it made his emotions worse.

"May, please?" He asked, trying to get her to look at him. She just let out a small "Hmm." before lying back on her sleeping bag and pulling the blanket over her. Despite it only being mid-day. The pair were sitting at camp in the middle of a forest in Hoenn, not far from Petalburg, May's home.

Ash shifted uncomfortably in his sitting position. It was ripping him apart to see the girl he loved suffering so much pain, even though it wasn't physical pain and there were no injuries to her exterior, he knew that it was all in her mind.

Seeing her turn away from him, Ash picked up one of her Pokeballs before glancing at the rest of the group feasting on their lunch. All except one. The one that used to occupy the now empty Ball. The cause of May's misery.

Everything was fine until a few months ago. That is until a virus spread amounst bug-type Pokemon. And after weeks of fighting a losing battle to save her from the disease, May's beloved Beautifly was tragically ripped away from her. He could remember it clearly as if it had just happened.

He had woken up in the middle of the night due to the sound of May sobbing and as he turned to look, he saw her cradling the butterfly in a blanket, saying soothing words to her. Minutes later, she was gone. He stayed up for the rest of the night to comfort her, but it seemed that it didn't matter how much consolation he gave her, it wouldn't work.

Not only was May grieving the loss of her friend, but she had been suffering from a terrible losing streak in her Contests. Up to the point that she couldn't bring herself to even qualify anymore.

Not only was this happening to her, but Ash had only recently found out that May had been receiving a lot of hate from other Co-ordinaters and even passers-by on the street. It stemmed from when she had previously dumped Drew. Ash growled quietly to himself as he thought about that. He hated the way he treated her –she had scars on her arms and face to prove it- and when she had the courage to get rid of him, _she _was the one who received all backlash from his fan-girls. It got to the point that she didn't want to compete anymore. Or talk to anyone besides him.

This was why they were back in Petalburg forest. Ash hoped that spending time with her parents at home would help May. It was still a day's walk away but, if it helped May to recover from her depression, he felt that it was worth it.

After a few moments, Ash had packed up everything in order for them to move on. May sat on a rock, staring at her feet. Her eyes looked glassy and empty. Ash didn't mind that she didn't help with the packing, after no food for a number of weeks, she was probably exhausted. It was at that moment, Ash realised that the litre water bottle was empty. They would need it for the rest of the walk. But he was reluctant to leave May on her own. He looked back at her. She had her head down and her eyes closed, breathing roughly.

"...May?" he asked. The only reply he got was a grunt.

"I'm going to refill the water bottle, I'll be back in a few minutes, ok?"

Another grunt.

Ash frowns worryingly before trudging off into the forest, carrying the bottle towards a clearing with a clear lake. He got on his knees to fill the bottle. The whole time he was thinking about May. He desperately tried to think of anything he could do to help her. But he didn't know how.

As he thought, he happened to look up and notice a flock of Swablu and Altaria flying above his head. It made him smile a little. It was good to see wild Pokemon flying free like that. They must have been happy.

But as he watched them, he almost failed to notice a young Altria swooping down in his direction in a nosedive. Ash yowled and leapt out of the way as it almost landed on him.

"Hey, watch what your do-" the boy stopped as he suddenly felt the Phoenix like bird peck his had affectionately. As if greeting an old friend. The male's eyebrows raise in surprise and confusion. Suddenly, he noticed something around the long thin neck of the bird. It looked like a red scarf of some kind. But as he took a closer look, he realised that it was a tattered and weather-beaten red bandana. A bandana which was strongly familiar to him.

"…That looks like May's… wait…" he edges closer to the bird. "Are you… that Swablu that May saved?"

The blue bird's head suddenly perked and it gave a small chirp at the sound of May's name. Ash's eyes widen in happiness.

"Wow! It's great to see you again… you've really grown!" He gave the bird a pet on her soft head. She chirped in pleasure, obviously happy to see him too. His eyes were drawn back to the bandanna tightly wrapped around its neck in several knots. He remembered watching May tie it around her when she was still a small Swablu when she released her. (**A/N: I know that didn't happen in the anime but I wanted to do it anyway**)

"Wait… you kept that around your neck all this time?" he asked the Altaria. The bird tweeted and nodded.

"Do you miss her?"

Another tweet.

"Well, she is here… but she's really sad." The bird's eyes widen as she hears this. She nips Ash on the finger. Demanding him to show her where May was.

"Ow! Ok, I'll take you." Ash picks up the bird, who craned her neck outward in front of her.

Ash walked back to their campsite, but stopped once he noticed May. She wasn't sitting on the rock, but rather lying on the grass in front of it. Her eyes were open but there was absolutely no life in them.

"May?" Ash asked her quietly. The girl glanced up at him sadly.

"I have someone who wants to see you." He puts the bird down as May sits up slowly against the stone. The bird chirps gleefully and jumped onto her lap, making her jump. Her eyes widened as she looked at the bird. She then noticed the bandana and slowly ran the tattered cloth through her fingers.

"…Are you the…?" she squeaks, slightly surprising Ash. She hadn't said anything in days. The bird coos and nuzzles May under her neck.

"She remembers you." Ash sat in front of her, putting his hand on her knee comfortingly.

May looked at the bird again, tears rolling down her face. She buried her face into the soft white plumage of the bird's body feathers, sobbing quietly. The bird rested her chin on the girl's shoulder and shut its eyes, allowing the girl to cling onto her.

After a few minutes, May let go of the bird who –despite her feathers being drenched- chirped affectionately and gently nipped her on the cheek. May scratched the tip of her beak softly.

"So… May, you want to keep walking?" Ash asked, helping the girl up.

"…Sure." She puts the bird on the ground and pets it on the head. But as the two went to leave, May felt something tugging on her sock. The Altaria had it in her beak and was pulling vigerously.

"I think she wants to come with us." Ash inquired with a smile. May blinked and picked the bird back up.

"…You… want to come with me?" she asked the bird, to which it nodded with a happy chirp. May hugged it again close to her. Ash took her other hand and squeezed it.

"Come on, lets go." He smiled at her as the three of them started the walk back to the city. With May –for the first time in months- smiling the whole time. Seems everything was going to be ok, after all.


End file.
